Are you looking for something cheap, durable, and specifically made for the classroom? Well, Chromebooks are all the rage in the classroom right now, and there are multiple good reasons for it too. In this post we will go through all the reasons to consider buying Chromebooks for the classroom, reasons to not consider buying Chromebooks for the classrooms, and other alternatives to consider.
The Good
The first reason to consider Chromebooks for the classroom is its cost. You can get a good Chromebook ranging from $250 to $300. Chromebooks also have an excellent battery life for a day filled with learning.
All Chromebooks come with a special operating system known as Chrome OS. It is a light-weight operating system designed by Google that revolves around the internet. It’s light-weighted nature also helps with increasing the battery life of the device.
Chrome OS comes pre-equipped with all common applications that is required by students. Apps like Google Docs, and Google Slides are used by almost all students to write reports and create presentations.
Students can easily log into Google Classroom to create a collaborative environment with other fellow students and their teachers. There are other apps that are available in the Chromebook that will help students adapt to the modern digital landscape. Typing Club is an app that helps students learn how to type efficiently. “Google for Education” also provides all the necessary apps that allow students to create profiles online and save their work in the cloud. This work can be accessed through any device that is connected to the internet.
Chromebooks are also very easy to use. It relies on the very familiar architecture of the internet and smart phones, which makes it very easy for modern students to pick up.
Chromebooks are equipped for distance learning. This is very important in the current world where remote classes are still held by some schools. Not to mention all the online learning platforms like Coursera, and Udemy which is fully supported by any Chromebook.
When the entire classroom has an internet connected device, you can always play interactive digital games in the classroom. Games in the classroom can make learning fun for children that have attention issues. There are apps like Class Dojo that makes gamifying the learning experience very simple for educators.
Digital resources like Google Arts & Culture are very important resources for introducing virtual field trips in the classroom. Just from their device alone, they can explore art galleries, museums, and more.
An important skill to learn in the modern world is digital notetaking. Chromebooks can be a very easy entry point for students to learn how to take notes. They will learn how to type and listen at the same time. They can also add images, links, and videos to their notes. The notes taken will also be stored online and students will be able to study-up on their notes on any device with an internet connection.
Teaching students how to use a Chromebook effectively will create an army of individuals who will be able to research and learn things on their own. They can be taught the power of the internet where they can research anything and everything that interests them under the sun. Learning to learn will be the most important benefit of introducing Chromebooks in the classroom.
The Bad
The other side of the coin when it comes to Chromebooks is that because they are cheap, a lot of corners are cut by the manufacturers. There are reports by critics that say that Chromebooks are unreliable and tend to malfunction within a couple of years for reasons unrelated to user treatment. Introducing devices that are cheap, and unreliable to millions of students throughout the world might not be the right decision to make when we consider the amount of electronic waste that might be created.
Chromebooks cannot be used in workplaces for the hardcore sciences. To explain the previous statement, we need to understand the workplaces for software engineering, CAD design, artificial intelligence, and research. Professionals of these workplaces will not be able to use Chromebooks for their work even if they want to due to the fact that Chromebooks simply do not support their software applications, or because Chromebooks lack the processing power to handle the amount of compute required.
Introducing students to a stack of software (Chrome OS), that has no application in some important potential workplaces might not be the right decision. This is because they will spend many years getting used to using Chromebooks and their quirks and features but in the end, they will need to learn a completely new operating system and software for their actual work.
The Alternatives
The most obvious alternative to Chromebooks are the cheap Windows laptops. The Windows operating system is the most dominant operating system in the world, so you cannot go wrong in introducing your students to a Windows laptop. If you teach your students video editing, or you utilize games like Minecraft for learning, then using a Windows laptop will be the best choice.
Another alternative is the MacBook line of laptops offered by Apple. Unless your school has a lot of funding, or 100% of your students are rich, you should not push for MacBooks. Although, if you go for MacBooks, it will be the best choice because MacBooks are not only durable, but it can also handle all software and computing tasks thrown at it.
So, What Have We Learned?
Chromebooks are good laptops to consider for students due to their low-cost and versatile nature. You can get all the benefits of an internet connected classroom with a price as low as $250 per student.
On the other hand, Chromebooks are known to be unreliable, and they tend to malfunction within a couple of years. So, it might not be a good idea to consider the hundreds or thousands of Chromebooks that you might have to order for your school.
There are alternatives like Windows laptops, and MacBooks which each have their unique advantages. Windows laptops are good at computing tasks and playing games. MacBooks are perfect for every situation, but they are very expensive.